Chris Boline
When it comes to people getting excited about the possibility of Oklahoma sports betting one day being legal, there haven’t been many reasons to smile of late. And now, things have only gotten worse thanks to the latest vote. Indeed, the Kevin Stitt reelection is awful news for Oklahoma sports betting coming to fruition in the near future. Stitt returned to office after winning more than 55 percent of the votes.
Now, the Oklahoma governor is ready to try and bring positive changes to the state, but it doesn’t look like sports betting is anywhere close to his mind. For a while now, Still has voiced that he’s not a proponent for legal betting arriving in the Sooner State. This has plenty of people furious, as they want to see changes come in. However, Stitt is in no rush, and his problems with the Indian Tribes in Oklahoma isn’t going to make things any easier.
For a while, the tribes and Stitt have bumped heads when it comes to revenue sharing. They’re just not on the same page there and no positive talks have been held of late. With the tribes looking to take the lead on sports betting, the expectation isn’t that Stitt is going to side with them or make their lives any easier in their chase to make it happen. There was hope that Stitt, a republican, would lose out on being the governor again.
However, with him winning his battle for governor, it really feels like the potential for Oklahoma sports betting has taken a major step back. Again, this is not what anyone wanted to see, as the calls for legal bets to arrive have only grown louder and louder from sports fans. Stitt is either ignoring those calls from people, or he just doesn’t care about sports betting. The potential for massive revenue is there, but he’s looking the other way.
Results are in, and Kevin Stitt has been reelected governor of Oklahoma.https://t.co/6q3fdiF3ez
— The Oklahoman (@TheOklahoman_) November 9, 2022
There’s still a chance Stitt and the tribes can settle their differences
Despite people not being too happy with the way things have played out in recent weeks, there’s still a chance Stiff and the tribes can settle their differences at some point in the future. Despite the two sides not seeing eye to eye, plenty of people have called for them to bury the hatchet and try to move forward. This would be in the best interest of not only Stitt and the tribes, but people in Oklahoma as well.
“We hope Gov. Stitt’s second term will be marked by an understanding of the economic, cultural, and social benefits Tribes provide to our state, and that he will agree to work with us on issues affecting all residents,” Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma Chief Gary Batton said in a statement following the results of the November election. “As always, we seek to focus on the things we can agree on, rather than our differences.”
As you can see from that quote from Batton, he himself is hopeful that peace can be restored. For the tribes, having Stitt on their side would be massive not only for just sports betting, but gaming as a whole. Only time will tell if things can smooth out or not, but the fact of the matter is that a lot of people feel like Stitt is playing a big role in preventing sports betting from moving closer to being a reality.
That’s why a lot of folks voted against him during this latest election. At the end of the day, though, Stitt came out on top and it’s back to the drawing board for the proponents for sports betting. The tribes are eyeing ways to try and get something done soon enough, but it feels like they have their hands tied a bit in this case as well. They’re going to have to get creative to record a 180 in this case.
Oklahoma sports betting feels like a long shot for the near future
The general feeling, which sucks, is that Oklahoma sports betting feels like a long shot for the near future. The Stitt news of course isn’t going to help, but the legislators aren’t being proactive either. Bills have failed on a consistent basis in recent years, only further delaying sports betting from being achieved. As we’ve mentioned before, right now would be the best time of the year for people to take advantage of sports betting in Oklahoma.
With it being the heart of the football season, NFL betting odds and NCAAF betting odds would be checked around the clock. With college football in particular, there’s always going to be a ton of interest in both the Oklahoma Sooners and Oklahoma State Cowboys.
Both of these teams are in the Big 12, one of the Power-5 conferences in the NCAA. The rivalry game would be massive to bet on, and with bowl season around the corner, wagers would be made quite a bit as well. All in all, Stitt’s reelection doesn’t give us much hope about sports betting on Oklahoma. Who knows, though, maybe Stitt and the tribes can move forward with something.
😤 @OU_Football TIES IT UP 38-38 👀 pic.twitter.com/wT11VlRRh2
— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) November 27, 2022
